Floppy Disk - Who remembers these?

[Alan_B]

I remember not only the cards, but also the monstrous line of collators, sorters, and readers etc that followed the card punch.

It filled a very large room in the factory.

 

The system "computerised" manufacturing control.

Management approved decisions of what needed to be built and available for delivery at dates between 1 and 3 years ahead,

and punched cards held all the information of what :-

sub-assemblies would be needed ;

components needed in each sub-assembly ;

approved suppliers for each component together with their order/delivery delay time.

A monthly progress printout compared what should have happened with current reality,

and this triggered butt kicking time.

 

Around 1965 I saw and warned of the first Millenium style computer disaster.

I was an electronic design engineer and had no interest in this new computer system,

but when the new control system took over I had to supply information in a new format on new components.

I observed that to minimise wastage of columns in an 80 column card any required date excluded the redundant 196.

 

I asked the computer consultant about the "butt kicking" reports :-

When in 1969 production events are scheduled for 1971, will spurious "8 year overdue" reports be issued ?

When in 1970 will things overdue from 1969 be allowed another 9 years before getting overdue reports ?

He agreed a double disaster lay ahead.

81 column cards and handling equipment was not an option.

He was faced with a total redesign that would require a few woman years of card punching to replace a significant chunk of his database.

 

He was a lot happier when I suggested that the "butt kicker" algorithm should add 10 to the due year before subtracting the current year,

and so long as the result was 10 or more then refrain from report.

[Corona]

Life was simpler in the typing pool.

[Alan_B]

Life was even simpler for switch board ladies

http://en.wikipedia....ard_770x540.jpg

 

That only involved recognising digits 0 through to 9

Punch Card girls also had to handle the alphabet.

 

The typing pool included skill at touch typing with fingers that knew where to find keys whilst the eyes deciphered short-hand notes.

 

We had a skilled secretary that could take a "comfort break" half way through a document on her IBM Golf Ball typewriter,

and on return immediately continue typing without looking at the document until she finished and removed it from the typewriter.

One day she looked at a completed page and realised that during her break some joker had taken the standard head and plugged in a mathematical/Greek symbol head.

[redhawk]

Remember the good old days of home computers before Microsoft was even heard of well my dad bought his ex-work machine many years ago, a Commodore PET 3032 with Dual Floppy Drive and Cassette Drive.

 

 

And you're probably thinking this PET is great until you try something random like WAIT 6502,x and find out the whole truth.

 

 

Yes sadly this photo isn't a hoax it's a real easter egg written by Microsoft to prove they wrote BASIC ROM in case Commodore would double cross them.

It's also probably unknown to most people but Microsoft was also responsible for providing BASIC for many old 80s home computers including the VIC20, C64, C128, Atari, Oric Atmos, Dragon 32, TSR-80 etc.

 

Richard S.

[Corona]

Still alive baby.

[hazelnut]

Interesting Richard:)

[Warlock]

Hi All,

 

Just perusing a moment and saw this post. When I had to replace my CPU it had only the CD burner and I'm stuck with a bushel basket of the small and large floppies. Oh well, might be able to use them for something, frisby practice.

 

May I now make my good friends green with envy? The other day the Mrs. stopped by a relocating yard sale and picked up a little used Compaq Model Q1859 18.5 in. color monitor for $10.00. Has a fifteen pin D plug so I'll have to see if it will fit or maybe a converter. Couldn't pass it up!

 

Must go. Take care.

 

Warlock

[Tr3bg0D]

[DennisD]

Wow!!

 

Not in the same league, but it reminds me of when we paid £245 (English Pounds) for a very basic Star LC10 9 Pin Dot Matrix Colour Printer ...

 

[CTskifreak]

I remember using the 3.5 inch floppies - we had a Gateway 2000 system. My 5th grade teacher actually had a bunch of old PC's with the 5 inch floppies that were actually floppy. We used them occasionally - usually indoor recess during the winter and really rainy days.

 

AJ